On Feb. 16, the Redondo Beach City Council will make its final assault on our harbor that began with the Heart of the City plan nine years ago. There are already 920,000 square feet of development in the pier and King Harbor area. The city will soon give its final approval to allow another 400,000 square feet, raise the height limit and allow three-story time-shares. All this in the face of a city-funded traffic study that shows this area going to gridlock as a result, a study city staff failed to share with the Coastal Commission last July.

Measure DD, which passed overwhelmingly more than a year ago in the largest voter turnout in Redondo history, amended the city charter to require voter approval before the above zoning could go into effect.

The entire City Council at the time opposed this measure, so it should surprise no one that it is now trying to circumvent its effects.

There is nothing left to do but to sue the city when it violates its own charter. If you live in Redondo, or anywhere in the South Bay for that matter, and don’t want to suffer the view and traffic impacts of this upzoning, mail a donation to Building a Better Redondo at 602 S. Broadway, Unit B, Redondo Beach, CA 90277 or visit Building a Better Redondo’s Web site.

— Bill Brand, Redondo Beach city councilman

How will port grant help San Pedro?

I could not help but question the job that the Port of Los Angeles is paying Jeff Milanette (as executive director of the San Pedro Bay Port Technologies Development Center) mega dollars for, plus getting additional funds from the grant.

Could you please tell us what has been accomplished so far and what is intended to be accomplished for the port and our downtown businesses?

The grant will fund a study for what – to put it on a shelf like many others? For the amount of dollars that he will be getting paid I do not see where he will do any good for our downtown. If I am wrong, please explain. I could see a lot better uses for this amount of money.

Thursday’s “Driving the sun power home” (Business), should have been reviewed by a qualified technical person. The author partially describes a new Honda refueling package for hydrogen-powered cars. He says that this was developed for use in consumers’ homes. Apparently his report is factually correct provided some important questions can be answered.

The single question of safety is foremost. The lower flammable limit (LFL) for hydrogen in air is 4.0 percent and its upper flammable limit (UFL) is 75 percent. Hydrogen is much lighter than air and any hydrogen leakage would rise to the garage ceiling and be trapped and accumulate there because home garages are not designed to vent the ceiling area. This could happen even with the garage door wide open.

Any leak in the system may soon release enough hydrogen to reach a concentration between the LFL and UFL, which could ignite and explode by various causes — even a hot light bulb. The result would be disastrous. Maybe Honda has a solution to this hazard, but we have no information published yet.

— Dennis A. Matthews, Torrance

Arbor Vitae project is a waste

Caltrans is getting ready to spend $87 million to widen the bridge on Arbor Vitae Street in Inglewood that crosses the 405 Freeway and erect a southbound on-ramp adjacent to the bridge that will connect to the southbound 405. Also a northbound off-ramp will connect to the bridge.

La Cienega Boulevard runs north and south, parallel, right next to the 405 at the bridge. Approximately a half-mile north of Arbor Vitae on La Cienega there is a southbound two-lane on-ramp to the 405 and approximately 0.3miles south of Arbor Vitae, on La Cienega, there is a southbound two-lane on-ramp to the 405.

Why in the world would Caltrans spend $87 million for one new southbound on-ramp when 0.3 miles south and a half-mile north there are two existing ramps? What a waste!

— Noel W. Houser, Inglewood

Democrats must set agenda

The state of the union is good except for the obstructionism of the Republican Party and Tea Party radicals. GOP ideology is trumping the American message.

It’s time Democrats stand up to GOP lies and distortions, expose their hypocrisy. Republicans in the upcoming 2010 midterm election will block every bill and piece of legislation proposed by President Obama. How do I know? They’re already bragging about what they’re going to do. The Obama administration and Democrats need to stand up and fight this cancer that has infected American politics. The Democratic Party needs to set the agenda and fight for the health care reform they crafted during the past year. Leave Republicans to wallow in their negativity.